Medical Imaging Center of Southern California

Nearly one million people in the United States are living with multiple sclerosis (MS), many of whom struggle with progressive symptoms and relapse. To fight back, the Medical Imaging Center of Southern California, under the direction of Dr. Bradley Jabour, offers IV treatments with FDA-approved drugs Tysabri®, Ocrevus®, and Lemtrada®. These medications have been shown to slow the progression of MS and help prevent relapse. To learn more about IV therapy for your MS, call the Santa Monica or Beverly Hills, California, office, or use the online scheduler.

IV Infusion Treatments for MS

Why is MS so difficult to treat?

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating autoimmune disease that attacks your central nervous system, more specifically the myelin sheaths that surround your nerves. While there are nearly one million with a diagnosis of the disease, MS can behave quite differently from one person to the next.

Most people with MS have a relapse-remitting version, which means that the disease is episodic, developing over the course of several weeks. The symptoms then tend to improve at least partially or completely, and the MS goes into remission, which can last for months or even years.

Approximately 60-70% of those with this type of MS go on to develop secondary-progressive MS, which is marked by an ongoing progression of symptoms that may be steady or episodic.

Since the underlying cause of MS remains unknown, there’s no cure for the disease, leaving doctors to treat it symptomatically when it flares up.

How are IV infusion treatments effective?

If you’ve tried other medications to no avail and your MS continues to relapse, IV infusion therapies with disease-modifying agents may help. The IV treatments that are available at the Medical Imaging Center of Southern California include:

Tysabri

This IV treatment is administered every four weeks to help treat relapsing forms of MS. The Medical Imaging Center of Southern California offers this treatment to patients who have exhausted other treatment avenues because the side effects of this medication include an increased risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, which is a serious brain infection.

Ocrevus

Ocrevus is approved by the FDA to treat relapsing forms of MS and primary progressive multiple sclerosis, or PPMS. Ocrevus is shown to reduce relapses and slow disability progression in patients who’ve unsuccessfully tried other medications. Medical Imaging Center of Southern California administers this IV infusion twice a year. This treatment also runs the risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy.

Lemtrada

Here again, if other treatments have failed to improve your MS, Lemtrada may help. You receive infusions of Lemtrada every day for five days, which is followed by a three-day course a year later. The side effects associated with this medication include a condition in which your immune cells attack other cells or organs in your body.

How do I know if IV treatments for MS are right for me?

If other medications don’t work to slow the progression of your MS or reduce the frequency of relapses, IV treatments act as a second-line treatment. To determine whether IV infusion therapy is right for you, the Medical Imaging Center of Southern California performs an extensive evaluation of the behavior of your MS, as well as an extensive review of your medical history. If you qualify for these IV therapies, your doctor makes sure you understand the risks so that you’re able to make an informed decision.

To explore whether you may be a candidate for IV treatments, call the Medical Imaging Center of Southern California or use the online scheduling tool to set up a consultation.